The present disclosure relates to an electronic control module, as it may be used in particular for transmission controls in motor vehicles, and a method for producing an electronic control module.
In motor vehicles, electronic control modules are used in particular for controlling transmissions. In this case, it may be advantageous to arrange a control module at the transmission, for example, inside a transmission housing, in such a way that it comes into contact with the transmission fluid, for example, an aggressive transmission oil.
The control modules may, for example, include electrical components such as plugs, sensors, actuators, at least one encapsulated control device (ICU, transmission control unit), and, if necessary, additional components. The electrical components may be arranged on a printed circuit board. The printed circuit board may be a conventional printed circuit board, on the surface of which or in the interior of which conducting paths are formed, with the aid of which the electrical components arranged on a placement side of the printed circuit board could be electrically interconnected. For this purpose, each of the electrical components may have electrically conductive terminal sections, for example, in the form of wires routed out of the component, by means of which the component may be brought into electrical contact with one of the conducting paths provided on the printed circuit board.
An arrangement of the control module in the transmission fluid may pose major challenges for the packaging of the building components on the printed circuit board of the electronic control module, since the electrical connections are, for example, subjected to high temperature change loading and furthermore must be able to withstand the aggressive transmission fluid and possibly metal shavings contained therein.
Conventionally, the electrical components have typically been soldered via their terminal sections to the conducting paths of the printed circuit board. US 2009/0176402 A1 and US 2008/0144260 A1 demonstrate, for example, plug parts whose terminal elements are soldered into vias of the printed circuit board.
However, it has been observed that solder connections cannot always ensure long-term reliability which is required, for example, in vehicle production; therefore, malfunctions or failures may occur in electronic control modules for transmission controls.